


Menagerie Malfunctions

by DarkFoxKirin, FionasEmbrace



Category: Big Hero 6 (2014), Madagascar (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Cute Baymax (Marvel), Fluff and Crack, Humor, Kitten, Kreihiro, M/M, Panda - Freeform, Puberty, Slash, Smut, Tadashi still dies, flamingo, grizzly bear - Freeform, hirokrei, komodo dragon, kreiro, panther, pubescent mood swings, tasmanian devil - Freeform, the one crossover that shouldn't have been made, wolf - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-07-13
Updated: 2015-07-19
Packaged: 2018-04-09 03:32:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4332237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkFoxKirin/pseuds/DarkFoxKirin, https://archiveofourown.org/users/FionasEmbrace/pseuds/FionasEmbrace
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hiro Hamada has always been a fan of Krei Tech, especially of Mr. Alistair Krei himself. And it seems as if Krei's quickly becoming a fast fan of the younger Hamada brother as well. </p><p>But what happens when a project meant to blow Krei's mind ends up blowing up instead? Thus, turning everyone within range into animals. Yes, including Baymax.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I'll Take What's Behind Door Number Two

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! So, me and the absolutely lovely FionasEmbrace are giving you the best fanfiction that you have ever seen! 
> 
> *Cue clapping audience* 
> 
> Thank you, thank you! (They love me! They really love me!) Ahem, enough of The Mask quotes, sorry. Anyhoo, we will be writing a chapter each. (The first chapter is mine. As is the cover art. Here's a link to some close ups if you want: http://forqt.com/gallery.asp?user=darkfoxkirin&folder=MENAGERIE%20MALFUNCTIONS )
> 
> Enjoy!

 

Hiro Hamada was thrilled at his success. The presentation blew everyone out of the water!

 

Hiro jumped down from the stairs just in time to meet his brother's fist bump. "Nailed it!"

 

As everyone came over, Fred threw his hands up in the air. "You just blew my mind dude!"

 

Honey Lemon swept the young genius up into a hug before gently putting him down. "They loved you! That was amazing"

 

As Tadashi messed with his hair, they heard a new voice travel to them. "Yes, with some development, your tech could be revolutionary."

 

Hiro looked up at the billionaire in awe. "Alistair Krei!"

 

Krei smiled gently and politely reached out a hand. "May I?"

 

After realizing that he was still staring, the younger Hamada blushed and fumbled at his jacket pocket till he found the microbot that was nestled in there and handed it over.

 

 

Krei took it and examined it with a hum of fascination. "Extraordinary." He looks back down at the 14 year old. "I want your microbots at Krei Tech!"

 

Hiro was stunned. "Shut. Up." He was about to agree immediately when yet another voice spoke up.

 

"Mr. Krei is right. Your microbots are an inspired piece of tech." The professor says as he comes to a stop right beside Krei. "You can continue to develop them, or you can sell them to a man whose only guided by his own self interest."

 

Krei rolls his eyes. "Robert, I know how you feel about me, but it shouldn't effect-"

 

"This is your decision Hiro, but you should know that Mr. Krei has cut corners and has ignored sound science to get where he is." Professor Callaghan interrupts.

 

Krei sighs and looks back at the teen. "That's just not true-"

 

"I wouldn't trust Krei Tech with your microbots." Callaghan interrupts again, glaring up the small height difference between them. "Or anything else."

 

Krei closes his eyes and brings his hands together as he opens them again. "Hiro. I'm offering you more money then anything a fourteen year old could imagine. In fact-" He frowns at Callaghan. "I am willing to make you an even better offer. Impress me even more, and you can join my company. Great minds like yours are exactly what Krei Tech needs." He smiles benignly and places a hand on Hiro's shoulder.

 

Hiro feels a thrill go through him at the touch of the hand on his shoulder. Krei is touching me! Krei is actually touching me! Goes on like a mantra through his head. He pretends to think about it as Tadashi walks up and stands protectively behind him. "I appreciate the offer Mr. Krei..." He looks over at Professor Callaghan nervously. "And... I would like to accept your offer."

 

Most of the group has a shocked look on their faces, but the most startling one is Callaghan's. He was glaring at him, but seeing him catch his stare, he smooths his face into a softer look of disappointment. "I... thought that you were smarter than that. Krei." He glares one last time at Krei before stalking away.

 

Krei smirks at the professor before bringing his attention back to the unsettled boy infront of him, handing him his microbot back and his personal card. "I look forward to seeing you again." He smiles kindly at the younger Hamada and nods at everyone else. The billionaire starts to walk away before stopping and addressing Hiro once again. "Thank you," Hiro looks up, startled. "for not believing Callaghan's words about me." He smiles again and makes his way out of the building.

 

Everyone else makes their way outside as well. While they were a little disappointed that Hiro wouldn't be joining them at SFIT, they were mollified by the fact that Hiro said that if he gets the job, he would visit at much as he could. In fact, he needed to borrow their lab for the project that he was going to impress Krei with. They agreed, but Hiro had to promise to let them help out.

 

After they opened the doors that led outside, Aunt Cass brought herself up to the front of the group. "Alright people! How about some dinner? Let's feed those hungry brains cause dinner is on meeee~!" She strikes a pose at the end of that. The Nerd Herd let out various sounds of excitement.

 

Fred jumped forward as the group continued to the car. "Yes! Nothing is better than free food! Unless it's moldy!"

 

Tadashi chuckled and stops with Hiro. "Aunt Cass? We'll, uh, we'll catch up, ok?"

 

"Sure!" She looks at them before lunging to tackle Hiro into a hug then bringing Tadashi into it with her other arm. "I'm so proud of you! Urrrgh! Both of you!" Both of the Hamada brothers laugh as their aunt catches up with the group.

 

Tadashi jerks his head over to the small bridge leading to the college and heading over there. As Tadashi leans against the wooden rails, Hiro comes up beside him. "I know what you're gonna say. 'Even if I'm disappointed that you're not going to college with me, I'm glad that you are finally using your gift for something important!'"

 

Tadashi smirks and shrugs nonchalantly. "No! No, I was just going to tell you that your fly was down the entire show."

 

“Ha ha, hilarious.” Hiro mocks as he leans against the railing as well. Like he wouldn't have noticed... He looks down. “WHAT!?” He scrambles for his zipper and fixes it. He wacks Tadashi in the shoulder afterward.

 

Tadashi yells out and laughs. Attempting to shield himself from his brother. After a moment they settle down and go back to watching the view. “I hope you like your nerd job... Nerd.” Tadashi says as he smiles down at his younger brother.

 

Hiro smiles and shakes his head. “Hey, I wouldn't even have been here if it wasn't for you so, you know, thanks for not giving up on me.”

 

Tadashi smiles back, but then an alarm went off back at the show case building followed by panicked screams. They both look up, alarmed, and rush back to the building where they can see a bright orange glow coming from around the bushes.

 

It's a terrible type of magnificence. The haunting orange glow coming from the flames that consume the once fine structure. Plumes of smoke rise from high broken windows. People are screaming and falling over themselves in an effort to distance themselves from the burning building. Tadashi and Hiro stop to gape at the scene before them before the elder Hamada brother hurries forward to catch a lady who was having trouble getting away. “Are you okay!?”

 

The woman nods but points back toward the flames. “Yeah, yeah I'm okay, b-but Professor Callaghan is still in there!” She keeps on running after that.

 

The brothers watch here leave, then Tadashi turns and heads toward the flaming entrance. Hiro panics and rushes to grab a hold of his arm, keeping him from going any further. “Tadashi, no!”

 

Tadashi jerks to a stop and gives Hiro a helpless look, then gives the burning building the same before turning back. “Callaghan's in there. Someone has to help.” These were his parting word as he rips his arm from Hiro's clutch and dashes for the fiery entrance and inside.

 

Hiro whips his head around, seeing the people that are far away, watching the once magnificent building burn. He sees Tadashi's hat float to the ground before him and moves to pick it up and run after his brother, but then everything explodes.

 

 

MM~HH~AK

 

 

The funeral was almost unbearable. It never stopped raining and the emptiness in his chest just wouldn't go away. As soon as they came back to the cafe, Hiro slowly trudged up the stairs and sat at the top, hanging his head as he did so.

 

Why? Why did Tadashi have to go into that building? He knew that it was only a matter of time before it came down!

 

WHY!?

 

WHY wHY WhY!?!? He could keep on asking himself that. Why. It wasn't like anyone was going to answer.

 

 

__________________________________________________

 

 

By the time he started to smell tea wafting up the stairs, he had decided to do something, anything, to try and distract himself from that horrible ache inside. He got up and walked the rest of the way to his room, shedding his monochromatic attire as he went.

 

He stopped when he saw something white fall out of his jacket pocket and flutter to the ground. The last Hamada bent down and picked it up. It was Alistair Krei's personal business card. And just like that, some of the aching in his chest eased the slightest bit. That's it, he'll just work on his project for Krei! And he did.

 

It was finished in a month. A month of working until his fingers felt as if they were about to fall off and there was a constant churning hunger in his belly. But it had all paid off because it was finished. As he gathered his project and put it into it's case, his eyes caught a video message indication on his computer. Hiro frowned and clicked on it. It was the Nerd Herd. “Hey Hiro. Just wanted to check in and see how you're doing.” Honey Lemon spoke up first. Then it was Wasabi. “Wish you were here buddy.” Next it was Fred. “Hiro, If I were a superhero right now, the only power I'd wish to have would be the ability to crawl through this camera, and give you a big hug-” Hiro turned the computer off. The motion sent Megabot tumbling off of his desk and slamming right onto his foot.

 

“Argh!” He yelled out as he flailed and hopped toward his bed. He sat down and tried to rub the soreness away. “Ow...” Across his room and into Tadashi's, a light flared in a circle on Baymax's casing, followed by the robot nurse activating.

 

He inflated himself and met Hiro's gaze when he turned around. He then looked down and lifted his long arms as he shuffled sideways and an attempt to get out of the cramped space next to Tadashi's bed, thus causing most of the books on the late Hamada's bookshelf to fall. Once the healthcare companion finally freed himself, he toddled over to the gaping Japanese boy. “Hello, I am Baymax. Your personal healthcare companion.”

 

Hiro shook himself and blinked a few times. “H-hey, um, Baymax. I didn't know you were still... active.” The last part he said with a small shrug.

 

Baymax tilted his head down with a whir and blinked. “I heard a sound of distress. What seems to be the trouble?”

 

Hiro looked away and shrugged again. “Oh, I just stubbed my toe a little. I'm fine.”

 

With that, Baymax straightened up and had his chest light up with the screen on ten different faces for levels of pain. “On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain?”

 

Hiro stared at the robot for a moment before answering and standing up. “Uuuh, a zero? I-I'm okay, really. Thanks, you can shrink now.”

 

Instead of doing just that, he walked over and bent down, trying to poke at his foot. “Does it hurt when I touch it?”

 

“No, no, no, no. No touching, just go-” The last part of that was cut off by him tripping and falling over. He then got stuck in the spot between his bed and desk. He sighed. He really needed to go and present this to Krei.

 

Baymax waddled over and looked down at him. “You have fallen.”

 

Hiro made a face at the large marshmallow. “Ya think?”

 

He tried to grab a hold of his shelf to pull himself up, but it broke under his weight, making all of the bots on his shelf slide and fall right onto him. Throughout all of this, Baymax kept on trying to ask him how high his pain was. Hiro sighed in aggravation. “Zero. I'm fine.”

 

This must go over Baymax's head as he leans over to pick him up. “It is alright to cry. Crying is a natural response to pain.” It's like he can't hear Hiro muttering 'no' in the background.

 

“I am not crying!” He squirms out of the bot's hold.

 

“I will scan you for any possible injuries.”

 

The young genius furrows his brow and points a finger at the robot nurse. “No scanning.”

 

Baymax looks him up and down quickly. “Scan complete.”

 

The boy throws up his hands. “Unbelievable.”

 

“You have sustained no injuries. However, your hormone and neural transmitter levels indicate that you are experiencing mood swings, common in adolescence. Diagnosis;” Baymax holds up a finger. “Puberty.”

 

Hiro's go wide as he waves his arms around. “Whoa, whoa, what?! Okay, time to shrink now!”

 

Baymax's gaze follows Hiro as he goes and gets the robot's charging port. “You are to expect an increase in body hair. Especially on your face, chest, armpits, and-”

 

Before he can finish, Hiro butts in, placing the port infront of the robot. “Whoa, thank you! That's enough!”

 

As the boy continues to crawl all over him, Baymax continues. “You may also endure powerful new urges.”

 

“Okay, let's get you back into your luggage!” Hiro exclaims as he tries to push Baymax's head down.

 

Baymax's voice is slightly muffled when he replies. “I cannot deactivate until you say that you are satisfied with your care.”

 

The fourteen year old has had enough of this. “Fine, I am satisfied with my- Whoa!” He gets cut off as he falls off of Baymax and lands face first onto the floor. As he opens his eyes with a grimace, he sees something moving around in his jacket's pocket. He blinks in confusion as he reaches out and drags it from out of there. He reaches in and stands up at the same time. He pulls out one of his microbots squirming around in his hand. “My microbot? This doesn't make any sense...”

 

As he finishes that statement, Baymax comes back over. “Puberty can be a confusing time for a young flowering adolescent into manhood.”

 

Hiro could see that he was trying to be supportive, but he shot that down. “No, t-the thing's attracted to the other microbots. That's impossible, the others were destroyed in the fire.” He grabbed a petri dish on his desk and places the microbot inside and closes it. “Dumb thing's broken.” He shrugs and moves to pick up his case again.

 

Baymax looks at Hiro, then goes to pick up the petri dish with the microbot gently clinking against the side continuously inside. He turns in different directions, observing the way the microbot kept on going in one direction. Hiro sees this on his way to the door and arches his brow curiously. Baymax backs up to where Hiro is infront of the door and looks at him. “Your tiny robot is trying to go somewhere.”

 

The boy thinks about it but no. He has to get this project into Krei first and foremost. “Yeah, I can see that, but I really need to get my project to Krei first.”

 

Baymax tilts his head. “Will taking this project to Krei stabilize your pubescent mood swings?”

 

He follows Hiro down as he makes his way downstairs. “Uh huh. Absolutely.” He answers, not really listening anymore. The crate was kind of heavy. Once he came down the stairs and evaded Aunt Cass and she went by, and the door closed on his squeaky vinyl casing on his arm, that he finally noticed that Baymax was following him. “Baymax? You know you don't have to come, right? I'll be okay on my own.”

 

The large robot patiently waits as Hiro frees one hand to help pull him out of the door. “You had replied that taking your project to Krei will help. I am merely helping you archive that goal.”

 

Hiro sighed and turned back around once Baymax was free. “Well, then follow me and don't get lost. I don't have the time to go searching the entire city for your marshmallow butt.” He looked both ways before crossing the street.

 

Baymax blinked and looks behind him at said butt. “I have been told that it is a 'rather fabulous butt indeed'.” A laugh bursts out of Hiro before he can stop it. This robot is something else.


	2. The Demo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiro agrees to take part in the prototyping of Krei Tech's new flagship device, and visits the company's test center for the first time. The new portal experiment is as ambitious as it is dangerous, with no saying what the machine will have in store.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's my absolute pleasure to collaborate with DarkFoxKirin, and write this chapter of the story. I'm so very impressed, and super grateful for the cover art. The fic idea was conceived out of this comment thread:  
> http://archiveofourown.org/comments/33996840
> 
> Gives you an inkling of what to expect, not that I can give away anything! I hope everything matches up okay with the first chapter.

Perhaps stranger things have happened. No one seems to mind when Baymax is yanked and dragged, squeezing between people's shoulders like an oversized balloon. Taking the squeaky vinyl hand in his own, Hiro zips through the foot traffic and dashes for the transit stop. The downtown streets are narrow, and bustling with people this time of day- everybody's getting off work. He could make better time if he weren't encumbered like this. Was Baymax ever slow. Was this backpack ever heavy. He didn't think getting there would be this difficult, but he never actually imagined it with a twenty-pound backpack in tow. Why'd there have to be so many people on this exact street? Yet, if not for how squishy and malleable this thing was, his personal healthcare companion would've been left out in the dust, city blocks ago. 

He glances down at the crumpled business card once more. Great, and he still hasn't left his home district within downtown. The sun is setting, now. There's the address. Krei Tech Central Campus, Studio #4, 1800 Pacific _Choume_ , near the corner of- this was more complicated than he thought. He pulled out his phone. 

Somewhere, at that building, he was waiting for him. Another double-decker bus blows by. Hiro puts the card away in his pocket, and adjusts the straps on the heavy backpack. Funny how he was entertaining this image of Krei Tech, as some vertiable Oz of the tech industry. Bustling with the latest frontier of science and innovation, right at this very moment. Play his cards right, and his project would be its newest flagship item. 

But it's late now, and they aren't crunching, and on any normal day, the entire executive office would be empty. He failed to realize Krei Tech is as much an administrative center as a test site. At this hour, there is still most definitely one person there.

Two, actually.

"Have you thought this through?" 

The executive is pointing at Krei, angrily. Given it's now long after quitting time, they overstayed the conference room- the next group didn't dare kick them out. What started as a simple, informational board meeting with the directors had become heated, gone late, and none were left except the CEO himself, plus one of the financial directors. They've been here, for how long? "This is craziness. Insanity."

"You've gotta understand, we rushed it last time. This stays between you and me, but it's obvious where we went wrong. We were underfunded, under-researched and understaffed. We didn't understand the domain. Now, we're operating fully through adequate private funds. We've had enough time, learned from our mistakes. And we have our new contractor-"

"What was the name?"

"Hamada." The director snorted. Krei continued, saying- "You see, things are diff-"

"Different?!" Somehow, this set the man off. He knew who Hiro Hamada was, and figured it would be a terrible gamble, paying someone like that to contribute to their R&D. "Have we really even had the chance to recoup the damages? And that was how many years ago? We are _still_ paying for that project, one way or another."

"Those're sunk costs." As Krei frowns and looks absently at the blimp outside the window, the director stays alongside him. "Look, we didn't get where we are today by sitting there with our finger in our ear."

"I know, but-"

"C'mon-" Krei is exasperated, still in the throes of an angry conversation he shouldn't really need to have. "He's already signed on to do the prototype. Why are you acting like this is an open issue?"

"Because it technically still is. There is a probationary period, conditional on-"

"No, no. Is this what we're doing? Really?" 

"I just don't want this kid's invention to become a liability. Instead of an asset, Alistair."

"I get where you're coming from." Resurrecting this project is all but decided. In practice, there is no going back. Yet, as a courtesy to the directors, he was entertaining this gauntlet of questions from them, and right here is the most tireless one. "Please, be on the same page as me. If something backfires, I'll own up to it and fix it. But I have a good feeling about this one. Really."

"I'll trust you, but I've got no choice, do I."

He smiles. "That's the spirit!"

The executive's mood lightened up and he chatted with Krei about some less-weighty things, the same way they used to do as friends. Golf. Investment firms. Recent trip to Spain. Krei is stifling back a yawn and doesn't know which he finds less exhausting. As for Hiro driving the company's newest robotics project, he wasn't expecting to have to fight tooth and nail for that. He shouldn't have to. Of course, no one lands the position of chief financial director through banking on the innovation of- whom he had to consider- children. But for anyone that could see the microbots in live action, it was a surefire sell. At least, it sold Krei. Now, Hiro may just have the key, unlocking the next frontier in material cross-space transmission. Portal technology. They are so, so close, and being first-to-market matters- so he'd take what he can get. And if-

There's a knock at the door.

He sees those familiar glasses. Krei's assistant peeps out from the door, paper-thin tablet in hand. "Mr. Krei. Your six o'clock."

"I didn't know I had anything?"

"Uh, it wasn't booked, he just showed up. And it's six o'clock now."

He glances at the time on his personal phone. "...Well, okay." Couldn't argue with that. Frankly, he wants any excuse just to get out of this. He excuses himself from the other executive, who won't let him go for love or money, and follows his assistant over the lobby.

And, at least the visitor's lobby was living up to Hiro's expectations. There's a 'Wall of Robotics History', a chronological arrangement of robots from all vendors, dating back to the last century. And a massive hologram projector that Hiro can't help but play with. He has half a mind to try and hack this thing. It might not be the best early impression to leave on the company. That's, _if_ they found out. Table that idea.

Baymax sits on one of the big, plush couches opposite Hiro. His plump little feet dangle off the edge of the couch, and he playfully swings them back and forth. "We are in the headquarters of 'Krei Tech'! What plush couches."

"I know, right-" Hiro wasn't fully listening, futzing still with the holoprojector.

Baymax abruptly leaps up off the couch, and bounces over to one state-of-the-art water cooler. "Allow me to get us some refreshments." Hiro is too pre-occupied to look over, but the robot's secondary optical sensor is immediately kicking in. He processes the machine through careful 3D image analysis, then and delicately and accurately fills two disposable cups of water. "Here you are." He hands one to Hiro, and dumps the other on himself.

Hiro sighs, wiping Baymax off with his sleeve. There are footsteps behind him, and as he peers at the reflection in Baymax's optical, he sees whom it is.

"My, your portal prototype is much different than I was expecting!" Krei and his assistant look at the assembly, spilling out of Hiro's overstuffed backpack.

"I-it's... You gotta wait until it's fully set up, to get a sense of the functionality."

"Wow! My pleasure to finally meet this one." He reaches out to shake Baymax's hand, but is instead greeted by a high-five with both of the robot's 'hands'. 

The assistant chuckles, and gives Baymax a fist-bump. Hiro finishes re-packaging the item into his backpack. "We're not setting this up here, are we?"

"No, no. Let's show you one of our testing centers, the same ones we're using for our _material translocation_ project team." They must not have a snazzy codename for this yet. 

Like, you know, Silent Sparrow. 

Hiro deliberately decides not to bring this up- it feels like a taboo topic. Was this whole investigation meant to pick up where that left off? It feels like another question for another time. They exit out the lobby, and the assistant had just left for the day. Hallway after hallway, Hiro feels about to become lost in this place. Conference room after conference room, it's even bigger than it looks from the outside. But finally, Krei keycards into one door simply marked 'Suite A5' and reveals a pristine and modern, fully equipped laboratory. It isn't anything like Hiro's garage. It'd do, maybe.

"I'm dying to see this thing in action." Krei hovers over Hiro, as he pulls the... _item_ , out of the backpack. Yeah, that's why it was so heavy. This is one solid, tangled mass of metal and wires.

The man's enthusiasm changes now that he's examining it more closely. Loose cabling. Remnants of a timer. Grounding wires. Reason being- he doesn't know if it's a computer, or an actual, functioning, bomb.

"Wait. No- is this-"

"My sensors indicate that this man is- 'concerned'." Baymax offered. "Rest assured, it is not a bomb."

"Why on earth would you say that?" Hiro shook his head at Baymax. "Thank you for establishing that."

"You are welcome."

"Uh, are those wires live?"

"No, they're detachable. See?"

"Okay." He sets a fire extinguisher back down.

"This is actually just the timing module. It sustains the device while it's in hibernation, so- on the trip here. It isn't necessary, so I'm unhinging it now."

After he pulls the black, cable-covered wrapping away, it reveals something entirely different. A complex patchwork of very sophisticated-looking components. It might as well contain the secrets of the universe. Krei can't help himself, and picks up the heavy item, which Hiro allows him to do.

"Incredible!" If this thing's performance is anywhere near as wondrous as it looks, the company's investors are very much in luck. 

He marvels at it. How vastly, vastly complicated this device is. The component is an impressive mess of wires, switches, and mechanical connectors. Parallelizing link interface boards. Next to that, a self-starting generator. He recognizes some of these components, but not all of them. He turns it to examine the other side, and it's one fascinating story after another. This segment is complete with a side-mounted fuse system, two-tiered mounted circuit board and power control. 

What incredible sorcery this thing must have in store. To think, he initially underestimated Hiro. 

He initially wrote the microbot project off as an interesting investigation. A clever trick. A worthwhile business opportunity, worthy of purchase, and some distribution, but probably little other investment. He soon realized that Hiro was capable of much more than that.

Sometimes, when Krei finds the time alone to think to himself he wonders if there is any limit to the potential of modern robotics. Transportation, medicine, architectural infrastructure- everything lies delicately on the cusp of a complete revolution in design. How many hours he had spent researching the trends in advancement for the last several decades. This master showpiece, this Pandora's box, a one-of-a-kind developed by this SFIT robotics prodigy, must hold the key.

Even with his years of experience in this area, seeing all six sides of this box, the CEO can't make heads or tails of how the thing works. Given the person by whom it was made, he chalks it up to it being too sophisticated to be understood by mere mortals through simple inspection. "Um, how does it interface with our computers? Where are... the ports?" 

"This is just the case."

"It's-"

"Literally just a bunch of random crap I duct taped together." He chuckles. 

"Oh." Krei, feeling a little bit sheepish, watches Hiro cut a piece of tape off with an old pair of kitchen scissors, and all the components come cleanly off. "Wait-", with the unwrapped mass of components dropping, one by one, to the floor, the words 'safety' and 'hazard' together come to mind. "How on earth did you take this with you on a streetcar?"

"I'unno." Hiro mutters, appearing to be singing a song inside his head, busying himself with removing the rest of the scotch tape, and Krei is making a strong mental note to never ever take that line again. "Okay, here!" He pulls off the rest of the encasement, to reveal a shiny white, modern-looking device with clean edges, almost no cabling, an appealing, minimalistic exterior. Much, much neater than the last thing he saw.

Krei's eye catches some decal work on the side. At a glance, it's pleasing to the eye, and quite impressive. Then his face falls. Oh, no. His look of excitement slowly withers into disapproval.

" _Mexxon_. You're buying parts from our _competitor_."

Hiro notices that, and flustered a little- "Uh, it was a free sample?" The CEO doesn't look any more impressed. Hiro has half a mind to say that he just likes how they look. Since, it's true. They sure know how to design a case. He thinks better on it. "Anyway, this is just the chassis. Totally peripheral. Totally detachable. Not part of any critical function. This is the only thing that uses their brand. I promise."

"Let's see the actual functional parts. I'm on the edge of my seat, here."

"One second-" Hiro mutters, 'holdyourpointynosedhorses' under his breath. He switches a latch on the pure-white chassis, and it unlocks and pops off in three large pieces. Hiro removes some connectors from the white plastic and ties them away. Once that's all said and done, the small, metallic item he pulls out- Krei sees it. It has a smooth surface and a hinge, and this assembly is now far, far smaller than the original box that the boy dragged in. 

This is far different than what he envisioned, he'd give it that. Far simpler, far more fascinating, even. Something catches his eye.

"It looks like-" Yet, there is something oddly familiar about the device, belying its true purpose. Those crisp edges and single hinge on one end pique his interest. There were two tines, finally tapering down to one connected vertex, suggesting something mechanical in addition to the computational. Yet he can't fathom how such a form factor could especially lend itself to the portal experiment- during Krei Tech's earlier days working with the government, he'd seen prototypes for portal interaction of all shapes and sizes.

"Pretty sick, right?" 

"... a staple remover? Is that literally a staple remover?"

"No! What are you talking about?"

"It says 'Office Mart' on the side."

"That's just some leftover paint."

"There looks like a crushed-up staple in the one end?"

"That's the _photoradiation translocator module_."

"I see."

"It's very delicate, please don't touch it." 

"I wasn't going to."

"Good."

"Does it hurt? If I touch it?" Baymax chimes in and Hiro simply looks at him and shakes his head. He was about to tell the robot he's satisfied with his care today. Showing it off this early, bringing Baymax here- maybe none of this was such a good idea. 

"Don't touch it."

"I'd like to see it interfaced with the NAV system." 

"I'd show you all of that, if you'd give me one frickin' minute."

"Sorry. Please, continue."

Hiro plugs not one, but three power cables from the device into the wall, and several more into his personal computer. And then there's the switch. One small yellow hobby switch, tucked away on the underside of the device. Krei silently looks at the boy, in terrible, painful anticipation, since he wouldn't ask to do the honors. No, he doesn't dare say anything. Rest assured, the waiting is killing him. 

The CEO needs to know if this device is really it. The next frontier in portal technology. The proof of concept that translocation was possible. The holy grail of everything they were investing in. All, tucked away within the confines of this device, developed by a teenager in a garage. When Hiro pulls the switch, the assembly completely comes to life. It's for _real_ , whatever this is. Krei tries to get a read on Hiro, but it's impossible. This might be, once and for all, his way of knowing that his faith in Hiro is warranted. It just has to be. The contraption whirrls and glows, becoming louder and brighter. It levitates slightly off the table. The parts rotate amongst itself. There's something so ominous about it- but he watches it, and waits.


	3. Mistakes Were Made

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The portal is a great success! ...Or not.

The device whirls and produces a strange baby blue and lilac swirl in the middle, which slowly expands and creates a perfectly oval portal to – God knows where. A small part of the contraption detaches and rolls across the floor to the other side of the room, unravels and produces the same portal as before. Krei makes as if to say something, but Hiro holds up his hand to stop him. This is the best part. He smirks at the billionaire before  _stepping through the portal_. Krei leaps up from his seat in a half attempt to pull him back, but then Hiro comes out on the other end on the far side of the room and waves. Krei is stunned. He's done it. A fourteen-year-old has created a fully functional teleportation device. Finally, the world will have teleportation capabilities! He realizes that he's gaping unattractively (untrue) and quickly shuts his mouth. “Hiro... This is- I-I'm-”

  
  


Hiro smirks. “Speechless?”

  
  


The CEO gives a breathless chuckle. “Yes, that would be the word for it.” He covers his mouth for a moment, looking at the portals then back to the young genius who created them before speaking through his fingers. “Whatever you want, it's yours. Just please join our company. No one in the entire world could have created such brilliance. At such a young age too!” Before he can truly fanboy too much more about it (and attempt to get to his knees), there is a loud ruckus at the entrance of the building.

  
  


It was the Nerd Herd. They were attempting to get past security. Fred slipped under one of the guards an made a dash past him before he could grab a hold of the comic fanatic. The others follow shortly with the security detail right on their heels. Fred leans against Baymax, breathing hard. “Sup Hiro. Baymax told us to meet you here. Something about showing a project- oh, there it is. Cool.”

  
  


Hiro whips around and glares at said robot. Baymax merely points upward. “Conversing with loved ones is one way to treat the grieving process. Would anyone like to share?”

  
  


Fred eagerly hops over, dragging Honey Lemon with him. “Ooh, me and Honey! Me and Honey! Okay, so we've been making something to cheer Hiro up, right? Right. So, this-” He holds up a pink spray can with green polka dots in front of him proudly. “is a special spray to create animal DNA on the spot!”

  
  


“Um, and why did you put animal DNA in a spray can?” Hiro really doesn't see where this is going.

  
  


Honey Lemon steps forward while Fred shows the bright coloring on the can to Baymax, who reaches for it, but Fred takes it out of his reach at the last second. “What Freddy's trying to say is that this chemical compound can give animals similar attributes of other certain animals. Like, if you want a cat to turn into a dog equivalent of that cat, it does so.”

  
  


Krei perks up from he's been examining the portal. “Really? That's interesting. What can-”

  
  


Before he can even finish, Fred and Baymax had gotten a little too close to one of the portals. The comic book collector kept on taunting Baymax with the spray can, making him toddle forward to try and take a swipe for the can with a bad paint job and filled him a dubious chemical compound. Baymax, getting rather determined, places one hand to Fred's face and the other towards the spray can. But then Fred slips and falls, causing Baymax to smack the spray can from Fred's hand to come into contact with the vibrant portal. There was something in the chemicals that made it corruptible to the portal's system. The younger Hamada's masterpiece makes a rather gross sloshing sound before emitting a noise that would have put the animatronics at Five Nights at Freddy's to shame.

  
  


Hiro paled, as did everyone else in the room. Krei quickly steps back from the violently shaking portal. “I'm going to guess that it's not supposed to do that?” Before anyone can speak or move, the portal  _ **explodes**_.

  
  


  
  


  
  


MM~HH~AK

  
  


  
  


Hiro felt like one big bruise. He's never felt this bad since that one time he got a really bad fever. The inventor sat up and groaned. More groans and whimpers sounded all around him in pain. Well, at least he wasn't alone in the extreme feeling of discomfort. He opened his eyes and had to quickly close them again. All of a sudden, he could see  _everything._ He slowly opened them again and gasped. Right infront of him was a  _ginormous,_ white dire wolf with a shock of golden blonde stylish hair (that was a bit mussed) on the top of it's head. Hiro slowly backed up as the giant beast slowly got up and groggily blinked at him. Before Hiro could get much further, he sank into a surprisingly soft and furry wall. He stops and slowly turns to look behind him and sees an even bigger panda bear just sitting there and looking at him! The panda brought it's large paw towards the young genius and he flinched, but all it did was gently pat his head. Confused, Hiro looks up into the panda's face, wait... “Your emotional and neural transmitter levels are rather chaotic. There, there.”

  
  


Hiro looks at Baymax the panda incredulously. “ _Baymax!?_ Then that means-” He spins around, searching the room frantically. The dire wolf was watching with a look of panic on it's face. That hair... “K-Krei!?” Krei the dire wolf hesitantly nods in disbelief. There was also a grizzly bear with Wasabi's hair and headband, a rather vibrant flamingo with Honey Lemon's hair style, her glasses and hairband, a Tasmanian devil with GoGo's hair as well, along with a Komodo dragon with Fred's hair and beanie. “The heck happened!? Wait-” He brings up his own hands to examine, no wait,  _paws._  He has  _freaking paws!_  No one could blame him for the embarrassing scream that erupted from him later. He frantically looked himself over, he had charcoal colored fur with faint grey spots. “I'm a young panther!? What the heck happened!?” At this point, he was screeching.

  
  


His bewildered question was left unanswered since everyone else was having their own freak out sessions. Except for Fred. He seemed ecstatic. Honey Lemon calmed down first. Smoothing down her pink and black feathers, she looks at Hiro from a few paces away. “W-well, since it was the animal DNA that created the explosion, then I think that the chemicals mixed with whatever was in that portal and didn't react well. Causing an explosion that changed us into various animals.”

  
  


Krei quits pawing at his face in despair and joins the conversation. “Well, how are we going to change back? We should be able to reverse the effects of the chemicals, correct?”

  
  


Honey Lemon nods thoughtfully. “I believe so.”

  
  


“Great! Then let's go.” No one seemed to be disagreeing, so he awkwardly marches back towards the double doors. There was a problem about opening the door, but after fighting with it for a bit, the door opened. To reveal a masked man. The masked man seemed just as surprised, but didn't stop gliding into the testing room on a wave of something black? Once the man got close enough, he saw that those tiny black things were his microbots! “Hey! What are you doing with my microbots!?” But all the strange man seemed to hear was a bunch of yowls and growls.

  
  


The man in the kabuki mask looked around in evident confusion. “I could have sworn... Krei was supposed to be here!” Everyone gasped. They knew that voice. It was Professor Callaghan! But how- It all came together. Callaghan was the one who started the fire, stole his microbots, and faked his death to achieve it! Hiro growled in earnest this time and launched himself at the man's broad shoulders. Hearing the growl, he twirls and snatches the attacking panther from the air with the microbots and examined him. He looked at everyone else strewn about the room and the broken portal piece everywhere. Callaghan was anything but stupid, so when the realization slowly started to bloom across his face, it was inevitable. He tosses Hiro away and quickly set his sights on the one animal that matched Krei's features. The dire wolf.

  
  


Krei yelped when sharp tendrils of microbots shot towards him. He immediately turned tail and ran as if the devil was on his tail. Everyone else followed his example and ran through the open doors. Everyone else but Hiro, that is. But Baymax had reached over and scooped up the protesting boy in a panther body and ran with the rest of them.

  
  


Now, if they had still been human, they most likely would have been caught by now, but since they were animals, they had faster reflexes and were able to dodge and avoid the tendrils of microbots that were trying to catch them. All of the rest of the building was trashed. Looks like Callaghan had been searching pretty hard for them.

  
  


When they make it outside, they come face to face with a wall of police officers.

  
  


Krei ran up to them. “Oh thank goodness you're here! The man is behind us somewh- HURK.” He stumbled off to the side, but tried to keep his balance. “Did you just-!?” Five more tranq darts thudded into the side of his neck and down he went. The fuzz then set their sights to the rest of the wild animals in the middle of the road.

  
  


Everyone scattered. (Callaghan slinked back into the shadows, vowing to find another chance to get his revenge.)

  
  


Honey Lemon tried to fly away, but a helicopter was hot behind her. She dodged in between various buildings and trees, but nothing could shake the persistent chopper. She finally got caught when she tried to reason with them. What part of being an animal incapable of human speech doesn't she understand!?

  
  


Wasabi was screaming and running through the streets of San Fransokyo as if he was trying to give a banshee version of a serenade to the whole city. He even managed to hide for a few minutes inside of a tree before the police shot at the rather bright greenish yellow headband. He fell from the tree with a huge goofy grin on his face.

  
  


Fred tried some karate moves on a rookie cop and managed to knock him out before the rest shot the Komodo dragon down.

  
  


GoGo was the fastest of them all and just flat out  _ran_. She zipped through streets, dodged various vehicles and tranq darts. It wasn't until she started to tire and ran into a dead end in an alley.

  
  


Baymax just sat infront of the cops and stared at them. One officer hesitantly walked over to him and shot him with a few tranq darts. Baymax kept on staring and didn't move. A few more were applied until Baymax had around thirty six darts embedded into his fuzzy tummy. Baymax looked down at them. “Oh nooooooooooooo-” He stopped when Hiro came barreling down the other street. He had lost his grip on the panda's fur which he was towing him around with but couldn't stop because of the various darts heading his way. So, he went around and was coming back for the fat marshmallow nurse. But as soon as he got into reach, Baymax snatched him up with a dopey look on his face and began to pet Hiro even as he squirmed and flailed. “Haaaairrrrrrryyyyyy Baaaabyyyyyy!” Before Hiro could get loose, eight darts thudded into his back, knocking him clean out and drooling on Baymax's chest. Baymax finally fell over backwards a moment later. “H-h-health care!” Thud.

  
  


 

_(~Who can make a sunrise...~)_


	4. Separated

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The portable portal backfires, and Callaghan hasn't given up. The seven of them find themselves in new danger.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is FionasEmbrace again with another Madagascar-inspired chapter!

The ambient sound of the rain coming down. The ocean, all around. The last thing anyone can remember is a scuffle with the masked Callaghan, and then police, and then... Animal control?

Ah, yes. Hiro groggily looks down at his black fur, little paws, and tail. The malfunctioning portal put them all in this state. It could be a life sentence, for all he knew. Maybe that wasn't the worst of their problems right now. If the masked man really wanted them dead, it might be even easier to do it this way. He looks around. There is some black, stamped text on the side of this old crate, something he could barely read. Something about the zoo? Then, why were they afloat? Something must be horribly wrong. The crate was large and waterproof, and he stood up. In the absence of light, it was tough to make much sense of his surroundings. 

Wait a minute. 

He isn't alone. There isanother creature here. A mass of white fur, subtly rising and lowering. A tail. He curiously walks toward it. Something's familiar. He bats at the tail, and it moves. The creature starts awake. They look at each other, each looking quite fearsome to the other, and shriek at the same time.

"Mr. Hamada?!"

"Krei?"

The wolf looks momentarily scared, and then settles back down. "Christ, for one fantastic moment, I forgot what'd happened to us."

"We were turned into... _these_ , and then animal control took care of the rest."

Another familiar voice sounds from the other side of one wall. "Hiro?! Is that you? I'm in here with Go Go." It's Honey Lemon's voice.

"And I am over here, administering care to our friends, _Wasabi_ and _Fred_." Baymax's synthesized voice stays the same, somehow. Hiro might never actually understand how that one works. In any case, that solves the rest of the mystery. That puts Krei and Hiro in one box, Go Go and Honey are in another, and then Fred, Wasabi, and Baymax are in one large shipping container. They all made it, and could hear one another.

"It's dirty in here. Fred won't stop drooling for anything."

"I can't help it, okay?!"

Hiro speaks, muffled against the wall. "We can find a way outta h-" But the water is choppy, and sends the boxes flying. Suddenly, the animals could no longer hear the inhabitants of the other boxes. Hiro shouts for Baymax and his friends, but to no avail. In another box, Wasabi faints. 

Finally, Hiro feels a sizable impact. The box with him and the wolf washes up against some rocks, and breaks into several pieces. 

Go Go punches a hole through the side of her box, freeing Honey as well, but neither one knows where they are. 

And Baymax still, somehow, had a rocket-propelled fist. The panda paw shoots through the crate and actually _tows_ them far across the water, to a remote part of the island. And the rest would be history. 

The wolf shakes the rest of the debris off. Hiro, happy to be on dry land, licks his fur. Now that they are freed of the crates, he runs along the beach to stretch his legs, and feels slightly better. He is having trouble wrestling his animal instincts with his normal, human ones. He has a million solutions for the robots they could build to get them out of this mess. 

But without his garage, or his computer, what could they possibly do? 

His companion isn't much better off. Maybe he should have listened to the financial director. He was so optimistic, in thinking that they had it this time. They were so close. The investors would have his head. He sighed, which came out as more like a 'snort'. Even if he were to transform back, how could he ever explain this to the board of directors? While all of this was going on, he kept experiencing strong cravings for raw meat, and fought the urge to keep barking and howling at nothing. He focused back on the situation at hand. At least, it was only their own money they were wasting. Yes, they squandered the chances of any access to government funding ever again.

Maybe Hiro had some genius idea for fixing all of this. 

Out from the Sanfransokyo skyline, whenever he looked at pictures or postcards of the city, he could see places like this far off into the horizon. Funny how he never noticed this place before. Never inquired too much about what was out there. There were so many smaller islands like these, used as nature reserves or small retirement communities. Didn't know if he could find this place again if he tried. The whole island was eerily quiet and lifeless. 

This was clearly designated as some abandoned, military-use test site. It was fallen into disrepair, and completely unsuitable for anything. The remnants of an old factory and some warehouses were still here. Off to one side was a truck that was left here. The foliage had grown in and completely overtaken it. Probably inhabited by a pack of wild raccoons. Or, maybe creatures not too different from himself. 

"Karate _Punch_." 

That was easy. Baymax breaks the side of the fence open. The three animals- finding themselves walking along the shores of a small island, clearly intended for industrial use and little else. It's bordered off by a chain-link fence around the perimeter, with cautionary signs and private property disclosures everywhere. 

The assembly lines are long shut down, and there was no possibility of human occupation. 

Wasabi is still trying to get the seaweed out of his fur. Baymax hauls his round, black-and-white body up some of the steps. The day was clear, and they could see far into the horizon off across the water, but that didn't help. What they really needed was some inking of how to get anywhere in the test facility, and find the others. It was a massive complex.

Elsewhere, the marsupial asks, "You can fly, right?" 

"I think so," Honey replies. "But I'm afraid of them catching us. The police, or animal control. We reveal ourselves, they'll just have us sent away." 

Go Go has a toothy, unhappy expression. "Or worse than that, Callaghan will immediately know where to find us."

"I-I don't even have my chemicals here... What can we do?" 

"Don't make me say it."

"Woman up. Yeah, I know." 

"I was going to say, we're in this _together_." The flamingo looked at her. "But now that you say that, it gives me an idea." She pointed toward the facility test site. "What if we were to find out how the portal was meant to work? Surely, the evidence is on this very island."

"Don't you think that's a little bit dangerous?" She looked at the path up ahead, and how the whole place had fallen into a state of disrepair. 

"Sure. But I think it's our best shot." 

The marsupial shoots out after one of the side entrances to the building, with a bright pink flamingo hot on her tail. This island is massive and so is the facility- there is no saying how long it could take before they find the others. It would be easy for them to become hurt or separated if they weren't careful. Nobody knew what was inside, except for the remnants of a failed experiment. Nothing good. The sign that said 'quarantine' is there for a reason. There is simply no other option. 

The whole day long, the three groups of animals travel forward. Baymax, Wasabi and Fred are in the warehouses. Honey and Go Go are by one of the test facilities. Hiro and Krei are far off from the buildings, in a grassy area by the beach.

As for things to aid in survival, they had practically nothing. No fire, to sign of the others. Hiro eats a bug. Krei kills and gets halfway through eating a lizard, but it's terribly unpleasant, and he becomes sick shortly after. 

The facility has tower after tower, with spires reaching all the way up alongside the smoke stacks, and several large warehouses at the bottom. Baymax, Fred and Wasabi are by the vehicle docking area, and the garage doors were falling off their tracks. The winds and weather came down hard on this place over the years, and it's hard to maintain something that doesn't officially exist. Some debris that had flown out of one of the warehouses was trapped amidst the rest of the structure and cycloned sometimes when the wind picked up. At least, it wasn't so cold anymore. The sun came out, and dried up all the water in all the animals' fur and feathers. If they were lucky, they would meet one another.

The three of them heard a boat horn far away, and the sound of the waves, and a plane overhead. They were not so cut off from civilization, and yet they were utterly trapped. 

Wasabi asked, "Do you know how long it is we've been walking?" 

Baymax answered, "One point five times 'e' to the plus twelve nanoseconds." 

"Great. Now, Baymax has lost it too." Fred muttered.

"Hasn't been that long." 

"Hey- do you see that, over there?" 

"What, a broken-down electric door, ready to come to life and smash its surroundings at any moment?" 

"Yes, that one." 

"You're not. We're not." 

"My sensor detects evidence of recent living activity, several miles in that direction." 

"See? It's at least worth checking out." 

"If we end up going the way of the dodo, this is on _you_ , Fred. It's on _you_." 

The three of them set off, toward the broken-down garage. It would take them through the complex of warehouses, into the main section of the test site. When they encounter a door they can't immediately enter, Wasabi breaks it down. It's easy to forget the strength in his arms, vaguely reminiscent of his blade hands. Fred possesses the strength as well, but he's lazy and easily distracted by some seagulls. 

Hiro wishes he had Baymax here. As a panda, or as a robot, it didn't matter. He'd be able to analyze and make sense of this whole situation. The ten-thousand-or-so lines of code that comprised his AI routine wasn't just for show. His brother always did incredible work and software was right up his alley. On that subject, maybe he didn't even need Baymax, either. No, he needed his brother. His heart sank. Much as he didn't want to get him self stuck, languishing in the pask, it was awfully tempting, times like now. Nothing worked.

He should probably just try and sleep. It was difficult.

And they were so close in hand. As animals, Hiro and the group were vulnerable, and he could have ended them faster than you can say 'Megazon'. Now, he once again finds himself watching the tiny robots, one by one, churned out of this busy makeshift assembly line. His army was building itself. These were like Hiro's initial version, but better, more adaptable- more capable of destruction. From a mind such as his, one could expect nothing less. He looks over at the terminal, at the current enumeration of them all, and wrote down the number. Yes, they were on the order of tens of thousands now. These ought to be more than enough. 

In some ways, it wasn't entirely fair. Those kids were bystanders, caught up in all of this. Much like his former student, there was perhaps a sense of injustice about it, having that young man's story end so early on. Only to serve as a mere stepping stone. It was sad. Nothing ever came for free. He couldn't be in the business of dwelling on these things. He needed to finish the project- the exact same one that began on Akuma island all those years ago. He needed to find them.

Animals or not, they had already seen too much. 

He needs them gone. It was only by a small miracle, that the cops hadn't gotten word of his work. Just as he always did, he would keep himself concealed, hidden in the shadows. If only the Sanfransokyo police force- or, to be more accurate- the regional animal control- could've only kept their nose out of where it didn't belong, this would have all ended much, much differently. 

And out of one of those six targets- one is undeniably special. That one warrants a different course of action. He crushes the pen in his hand.

It might not be too late to find them. Couldn't have gone far.

Whenever Hiro meant to sigh, he mewed. It was due to become a roar, when he's fully grown, but for now, it was almost a _cute_ sound. Ah, well. The night air is quiet, but every time he drifts off, something wakes him again. In the dark, a flash of movement catches Hiro's eye. A fuzzy tail. Unable to resist, he sneaks up behind it. Wait. No, not from here. He re-positions himself from another angle of attack, and readies himself. No, not here, either. He abandons that idea and simply bats Krei's tail a little. Krei started up, annoyed at this, and rolled over. 

But there it is, his tail keeps moving every so often involuntarily, enticing Hiro all the same. He bats at it again, and then leaps through the air and dives and rolls. One of his smoothest hunting moves, for right now. Krei feels himself steadily losing patience, and with one eye open he growls. Hiro's human sense kicks in, and he realizes what he's doing, and mutters a "sorry." Krei shuts his eyes and continues trying to sleep. 

Moments go by. He must be asleep now, by the way his ears twitch every so often, he must be dreaming about something. Probably Callaghan. Hiro can't help but smile. There was a sense of irony about it all. All the events until now had put them all on this island, the very same one responsible for the original portal experiment. It could very well be, that the whole thing was doomed. He feels that if he could find Baymax, and the others, they could find out the way to reverse this transformation and to stop Callaghan. And he could do that. 

But now, it's just so damn cold. He snuggles up to that white fur, and makes himself comfortable against Krei's stomach. The wolf halfway opens his eyes. "What are you doing?" 

"It's cold." Hiro says. He didn't know if Krei is sleep talking or what. The canine drifts back off. The white fur is soft, and fuzzy, and he feels better. He snuggles right up to the canine's side. He looks over. He wonders if, maybe if he listens hard enough, he could hear Baymax's jets. But all he hears is the sound of crickets, and the water far away.


End file.
